Overview
- An advisory from the Vishwa Hindu Parishad instructs Maharashtra garba-dandiya organisers to bar non-Hindus, apply tilak on entrants, and conduct Aadhaar verification at gates.
- VHP says its members and Bajrang Dal volunteers will monitor venues and calls for CCTV installation and enhanced police security during the Sept 22–Oct 1 festival.
- VHP spokespersons argue the events are religious worship rather than entertainment and cite concerns over so-called Love Jihad to defend exclusion and surveillance measures.
- Maharashtra BJP leader Chandrashekhar Bawankule says organising committees may set entry conditions if events have police permission, while Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar condemns the move as divisive.
- In Madhya Pradesh, BJP figures including MP Alok Sharma and MLA Rameshwar Sharma urged non-Hindus to stay out or publicly perform Hindu rites, with warnings of punitive action and a Bajrang Dal memo seeking a Muslim entry ban in Bhopal.